Lately, I’ve been catching up with the cheeky and sexy HBO series True Blood. Be still my beating heart! Anyway…I started to think about how True Blood can help improve your content writing.

True Blood (season 1) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The vampires on True Blood use their eyes to glamour (compel) a person when they need to get out of a sticky situation. It comes in handy for briberies and commandments. But it also comes in handy when you want your content writing to be read by your chosen target audience. It’s how you become an ‘authority’ in your niche market.

Wouldn’t it be great if your content made readers want to take some type of action?

It doesn’t matter if you’d like them to subscribe to your blog, share blog posts or purchase a product/service. The bottom line is that your readers must feel something that makes them ‘want to’ take action based on your content.

Let’s face it; most entrepreneurs and business owners want to drive traffic to their blogs, websites, squeeze pages, and email signup forms.

In order ‘to drive’ your clients, customers and readers, you first must entice them by using the right words within your content writing. Forget about trying ‘to force’ them to take action because you can’t force anyone to do anything. Just ask a parent!

Let’s further examine the how you can improve your content writing, The True Blood Way.

Sink Your Teeth into Better Content Writing with the Vampires from True Blood

Identify your target audience/market

Some of the vampires on True Blood are picky when it comes to drinking blood. They find their ‘targets’ and go in for the kill.

Knowing your target audience is important before content is written it’s highly imperative to know who it’s for. This seems logical and simple but most business owners and entrepreneurs can’t identify their target audience. They try to be everything to everyone. That doesn’t work.

Put yourself into your readers shoes

Not all vampires on True Blood want to drink human blood. They’ll drink True Blood, a synthetic bloody drink. Why? Deep down they still know what it means to be human. They still know the difference between right and wrong.

Talk about a topic from a reader’s point of view. This is why it’s important to know who your target audience is. For example, if you own a graphic design business and want a blog post written on the best use of colors in logos, your readers may not understand terms such as RGB, CMYK, and Pantone. They may not understand what layering means. Avoid using industry jargon, unless your audience understands it.

Identify the hook and bait

The vampires use their eyes to glamour or compel humans to do whatever it is they want them to do. Once the humans are hooked, the vampires have them do their bidding. It’s the same with content writing. You want to hook readers so they’ll continue to visit and read your blog posts or articles. Examples of hooks are:

News

Shock

Controversy

Humor

Ego driven

Personal

How to

Other

In order to ‘hook’ a fish, you must use bait that looks and smells good. In this case, your content writing is the bait. If it isn’t targeted to your audience or they don’t find it helpful, you’re publishing the wrong content. Take a look at your competitors and see how they ‘hook’ readers. What types of blog posts and articles do they write? Which ones receive the most comments, tweets and follows? This type of research is invaluable and can increase your blog subscribers and or sales.

Choose and use keywords wisely

The vampires on True Blood know how to get under humans skin by using ‘keywords’ that get their point across in a matter of seconds.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is still important within content writing if you want to rank in Google, Bing, Yahoo!, etc. Use Google AdWords Keyword Tool or some other keyword tool to find the best keywords for your content. Reading your competitors’ blogs and or articles is another way to find keywords. Of course, you can always hire a SEO firm to find the right keywords for your blog and or website.

Some of the vampires on True Blood have been around for a long time and have an extensive vocabulary. But they’re smart enough to use ‘power’ words that trigger humans’ emotions. You too can use words in your content writing that readers will understand

You may have noticed that tabloids and magazines like Cosmopolitan use ‘trigger words’ to invoke emotion in their readers. Some headlines are over-the-top and make readers take a second a look. For example, the classic tabloid headline, “HEADLESS BODY IN TOPLESS BAR” (The New York Post 1982) is eye-catching and clever. Who can resist reading the article?

Here’s a list of powerful trigger words:

Ruthlessly

Cutting Edge

Warning

Sleaze

Scumbag

Sabotage or Sabotaging

Fight

Courage

Steal or Stealing

Battle

Self-Doubt

Exclusive

Popular

Insane

Crazy

Exciting

Unique

Obsession

Miracle

Luxury

Simple

Simply

Simplified

Insider

Last Minute

Secret

Imagine

Exhausted

Amplify

Explode

Boost

Shatter or Shattering

If you get a moment, review your headlines and content. Are they filled with vague, mind-numbing words? Do they make readers stop whatever it is they’re doing so they can read your blog posts, articles, newsletters, etc.? Don’t worry. Your headlines and content probably need a ‘tweak’ here and there.

Short and simple sentences rule

Some vampires on True Blood speak in short and simple sentences, especially when they want to make a point. Writing long and winding sentences is the best way to put readers to sleep. Short and simple sentences keep readers engaged and awake. Most people are under time constraints and want to read content fast. They want to ‘get in’ and get out and take away solutions to their problem. Keep sentences short and sweet and your readers will come back for more.

Find your voice

The vampires on True Blood have a variety of voices. Some are harsh and sarcastic; while others are arrogant and cocky. Everyone has a voice, but when it comes to content writing, it’s important to use the right voice. This means ‘how you speak’ in your blog posts and or articles. Your voice could be:

Formal

Informal

Technical

Funny

Conversational

Sarcastic

Other

Remember…Think about your readers before posting content. If you want your voice to a magnet that draws readers to your blog or website, you must choose the ‘right’ voice for your content.

Are you ready to improve the content writing for your business?

If you answered YES, give yourself a ‘pat’ on the back and clap loudly.

Follow the steps outlined above to improve the content writing on your blog or website. If you get stuck or find that you don’t have the time or patience, you can always hire a freelance writer. You don’t have to struggle, push or pull to create red hot content.

If you don’t know who your target audience/market or ideal readers are, read your competitors’ blogs or websites. What works for them? How can you use their success to help you become a success? I’m not talking about blatantly copying their content. I’m talking about finding out what works so you can improve your readers’ experience when they visit your blog or website.

You can take a bite out of your content writing and sink your teeth into blogging success. Get started. Right now!

Thanks for reading. Leave your comments below. And… Don’t forget that True Blood (based on the The Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris) can be seen on Sunday at 9 pm EST on HBO.

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4 Comments

I’ve got a trigger word or two for you…Erik Northman. Oh le swoon. Bite me, I’m a fairy from the mists in Briton, Erik! OK, I’m calming down so I can comment with some semblance of intelligence that isn’t punctuated by thinly veiled shades of Northman.

This is actually a fantastic and informative article for both newbies and veterans alike. I believe in trigger words (you baited me with them, didn’t you?). I’ve used them in some of my articles and stealthily sprinkled some of them within journalistic stories of a more “cerebral” nature, unbeknownst to my reader audience. It works like magic — almost like fairy magic or some sort of telepathic ability to read minds…but I digress. I’m worse than a 21 year old man at a Sports Illustrated swimsuit photo shoot.

I have a couple of other True Blood themed posts I want to write. It’s a great show. Eric’s one of my favorite characters along with Alcide. I always did have an affinity for wolves. Who says you can’t learn from TV?

I have an affinity for wolves as well. My dog is 1/2 wolf, 1/2 husky…love my wolfie. Love the Starks – Winteriscoming! I liked Alcide too. I’m not a big werewolf gal (I’ll stick w/hot vampires), but his character, both in the books and the series brought me over to the howling side. Yum. OK, behaving now.

How about a post about social media and tie it in with Sookie’s telepathy and how you need to be intuitive as well as utilize analytics to get the most out of it — or something like that…

I’ve only met a handful of people that have a dog that’s 1/2 wolf and 1/2 half husky. I volunteered with The Arizona Humane Society, and I remember a couple of guys bringing their ‘wolf dogs’ to the grand opening of the Petique at the Biltmore in Phoenix. The kids loved the dogs but parents were kind of standoffish. My dad’s friend raised Huskies so I was used to being around ‘wolf looking’ dogs. The dogs were gentle and well behaved.

I know what you mean about Alcide. I haven’t read the Sookie Stackhouse (sped read through the first book) books and wondered if the characters in the book is close to the characters on the show.

That’s a great idea about tying social media with Sookie’s telepathy! I have a personal development blog and thought of a couple of posts for it based on True Blood, but I haven’t gotten around to writing any, yet. The possibilities are endless from energy vampires to shifting your life like a shape-shifter.